PBL Overview

Title:
Teacher:
Content
Focus:
Project Idea:
Summary of the
issue,
challenge,
investigation,
scenario, or
problem

8th Grade PBL

Chock
8th Grade Mathematics

Essential
Question:

How does recycling impact the

ecosystem?

Content and
Skills
Standards to
be addressed:
(CCCSS,
NGSS, Calif.)

Next Generation Science Standards:

Est. Start Date:

Duration: 4 weeks
th
Grade Level: 8 grade
Other subject areas to be included:
Science

Students will:
- Investigate the concept of natural resources
- Create their own recycling system to track the amount of resources consumed
- Evaluate their own recycling system (at school)
- Collect and record data from their findings
- Research reusable and non-reusable energy
- Interpret, graph, and create linear functions
Driving
Question:

How can we create an effective

recycling system to save
resources?

LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental
interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors. (MS-LS2-1)

In any ecosystem, organisms and populations with similar requirements for food,
water, oxygen, or other resources may compete with each other for limited resources,
access to which consequently constrains their growth and reproduction. (MS-LS2- 1)

ESS3.A: Natural Resources

Humans depend on Earths land, ocean, atmosphere, and biosphere for many
different resources. Minerals, fresh water, and biosphere resources are limited, and
many are not renewable or replaceable over human lifetimes. These resources are
distributed unevenly around the planet as a result of past geologic processes. (MSESS3-1)

ESS3.C: Human Impacts on Earth Systems

Human activities have significantly altered the biosphere, sometimes damaging or
destroying natural habitats and causing the extinction of other species. But changes to
Earths environments can have different impacts (negative and positive) for different
living things. (MS-ESS3-3)
1

 Typically as human populations and per-capita consumption of natural resources

increase, so do the negative impacts on Earth unless the activities and technologies
involved are engineered otherwise. (MS- ESS3-3),(MS-ESS3-4)
ESS3.D: Global Climate Change
Human activities, such as the release of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels,
are major factors in the current rise in Earths mean surface temperature (global
warming). Reducing the level of climate change and reducing human vulnerability to
whatever climate changes do occur depend on the understanding of climate science,
engineering capabilities, and other kinds of knowledge, such as understanding of
human behavior and on applying that knowledge wisely in decisions and activities.
(MS-ESS3-5)
California Common Core State Standards Mathematics:
8.EE.5.
Graph proportional relationships, interpreting the unit rate as the slope of the graph.
Compare two different proportional relationships represented in different ways. For
example, compare a distance-time graph to a distance-time equation to determine
which of two moving objects has greater speed.
8.EE.6.
Use similar triangles to explain why the slope m is the same between any two distinct
points on a non-vertical line in the coordinate plane; derive the equation y = mx for a
line through the origin and the equation y = mx + b for a line intercepting the vertical
axis at b.

8.EE.7.
Solve linear equations in one variable.
8.F.3.
Interpret the equation y = mx + b as defining a linear function, whose graph is a
straight line; give examples of functions that are not linear.
8.F.4.
Construct a function to model a linear relationship between two quantities. Determine
the rate of change and initial value of the function from a description of a relationship
or from two (x, y) values, including reading these from a table or from a graph.
2

Interpret the rate of change and initial value of a linear function in terms of the situation
it models, and in terms of its graph or a table of values.

8.F.5.
Describe qualitatively the functional relationship between two quantities by analyzing a
graph (e.g., where the function is increasing or decreasing, linear or nonlinear). Sketch
a graph that exhibits the qualitative features of a function that has been described
verbally.
F-BF.1.
Write a function that describes a relationship between two quantities.
S-ID.1.
Represent data with plots on the real number line (dot plots, histograms, and box plots)
S-ID.7.
Interpret the slope (rate of change) and the intercept (constant term) of a linear model
in the context of the data

T+A
21st Century
Skills and
MPS to be
explicitly
taught and
assessed (T+A)
or that will be
encouraged (E)
by Project work
but not taught
or assessed:

NGSS Practice
Standard:
2. Developing and using
Models
NGSS Practice
Standard:
3. Planning and carrying
out investigations
NGSS Practice
Standard:
4. Analyzing and
interpreting data
NGSS Practice
Standard:
5. Using mathematics and
computational thinking
NGSS Practice
Standard:
8. Obtaining, evaluating,

E
X

T+A
Mathematical Practice
Standard:
3. Construct viable
arguments and critique the
reasoning of others
Mathematical Practice
Standard:
4. Model with mathematics

21st Century Skill:

Collaboration

21st Century Skill:

Presentation

21st Century Skill:

Critical Thinking

and communicating
information
Mathematical Practice
Standard:
2. Reason abstractly and
quantitatively
Group:
Culminating
Products and
Performances

Individual:

21st Century Skill:

X
Using technology
X
- Graphing
- Research
Presentation Audience
Visual Representation:
Class
X
- Groups need to visually display their
findings/information. Projects could School
include a tri-fold poster board, power
point presentation, prezi, website
Community
design etc.
Assessment:
Experts
- Students will demonstrate knowledge
of math content through assessments. Web (if a group
(Worksheets and quizzes)
decides to create a
website)
- Students will complete quick-writes
Other: Principal
- Students will write about their
jobs/tasks completed in the last 4weeks

Project Overview
Entry event
to launch
inquiry, engage
students:
Outline or
Conceptual
Flow
Include
assessment
points:

Pre- Assessment:
1. Students will be asked to interpret, graph, and create linear functions.
2. Students will be asked to write about what they know about resources. Include:
reusable and non-reusable energy sources. Students will be asked to write about
where paper, plastic, and water come from.
Teacher will use the assessment to determine which math skills need to be revisited, or
skills that we could further explore.
Entry Event:
Show video: depletion of natural resources or reasons why we should recycle

Week 1:
LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems
4

1. All living things are reliant on their environment

2. In order for us (people) to survive we need food (from plants and animals),
clean water (uncontaminated), and clean oxygen (not polluted).
8.EE.5.
Graph proportional relationships, interpreting the unit rate as the slope of the graph.
1. What is slope?
2. How is it calculated?
3. How does it fit into our linear equation?
Pre-Assessment: Assessing prior knowledge

Week 2:
ESS3.A: Natural Resources
1. Resources are limited
2. What happens when any species runs out of resources?
3. What can we do to slow down the process, or stop the depletion of resources?

8.EE.6.
Use similar triangles to explain why the slope m is the same between any two distinct
points on a non-vertical line in the coordinate plane; derive the equation y = mx for a
line through the origin and the equation y = mx + b for a line intercepting the vertical
axis at b.
1. What do different slopes mean?
2. What do those graphs look like?
Assessment- math quiz

Week 3:
ESS3.C: Human Impacts on Earth Systems
1. What have humans done to help or hurt the resources?
2. What evidence is there to support those claims?
3. What can we do?
Assessment- math quiz

Week 4:
ESS3.D: Global Climate Change
1. What positive or negative effects does this have on our climate?
2. How are these are related?
8.F.3.
5

Interpret the equation y = mx + b as defining a linear function, whose graph is a

straight line; give examples of functions that are not linear.
1. Be able to read a graph (y = mx + b) where m is your slope, x is your variable,
and b is your y-intercept
8.EE.7.
Solve linear equations in one variable.
1. Be able to know what y is, if x is given.
2. Calculate x and y values
Assessment: Final Presentation

Assessments

Formative
Assessments
(During Project)

Quizzes/Tests:
- Interpreting and
graphing linear
functions

Journaling/Learning Log:

Quick-writes will all

be documented
Data collection will
all be documented

Preliminary
Plans/Outlines:
-

Students need to
document a rough
draft and plan for data
collection

Rough Drafts:
-

Rough draft for graph

and project need to be
submitted

Online Tests/Exams
Summative
Assessments
(End of Project)

Written Product(s), with

rubric:
-

Other Products

Teacher will provide a

grading rubric at the
start of the PBL.
6

Students and teachers

will grade
Oral Presentation, with
rubric:
-

Resources
Needed

Peer Evaluation
-

Teacher will provide a

grading rubric at the
start of the PBL. Peers
and teachers will grade

Peers will have a

chance to grade
other students

Multiple Choice/Short
Answer Test

Self-Evaluation

Essay Test

Other

Students will have a

chance to grade
themselves,
according to rubric

Teachers classroom, grade level of teachers classrooms,

office to monitor/collect resources (paper, plastic, water,
cardboard, etc.)
Student laptops

On-site people,
facilities
Equipment

Reusable resources, graph paper, poster paper/board,

markers, technology, pencils, manila folders

Materials
Community resources

Reflection
Methods

(Individual,
Group, and/or
Whole Class)

Journal/Learning Log

Focus Group

Whole-class Discussion

Fishbowl Discussion

Survey

Other

Project Teaching and Learning Guide

Knowledge and Skills Needed by Students
(to successfully complete culminating projects and to do well on summative assessments)
Student needs to be able to:
- Identify the slope of a line

Student needs to be able to:

- Evaluate, interpret, graph linear functions

Student needs to be able to:

- Create a linear function with given data

Student needs to be able to:

- Understand why we have varied systems of
recycling, and why we are developing
awareness/technology with renewable
energy sources
7

Student needs to be able to:

- Effectively demonstrate knowledge about
reusable and non-reusable resources

Student needs to be able to:

- Understand what happens when resources
expire?
-

Answer the question: What can we do to

help?

Questions to be Provided by the Project Teacher

(to successfully complete culminating products and to do well on summative assessments)
Teacher asks questions to recall facts, make
observations, or demonstrate understanding:
- What are natural resources?
- What does it mean to recycle?
- What is slope? What does it measure?
- Which is the x-axis, which is the y-axis?
Teacher asks questions to apply or relate:
- What did your data tell you?
- What can you do with this information?
- How would you create a slope of a line for
your data?

Teacher asks questions to summarize, analyze,

organize, or evaluate:
- What do different slopes tell you about a
graph?
- Why did you plot that point there?
- What would happen if we ran out of a
particular resource? What would we do?
Teacher asks questions to predict, design, or
create:
- What can your classroom, school,
community do to recycle?
- How can we raise awareness about recycling
resources?
- What did you learn from this project?

Teacher Reflection:
How did the unit flow? What worked well? What needs to be changed for next time? What did the
students learn? What evidence do you have to support students learning?